Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Well, it's happened. There are now less weeks left at the mtc than there are weeks that I've already been here. It's been a great experience, but I'm still super excited to head off to Japan in a few weeks. This last week has been quite an interesting week for sure. Last wednesday all the new missionaries going to Japan arrived, and that's been fun. Alot of them have studied japanese a little bit before they came to the MTC, which makes it really fun to watch them as they try to teach each other different pieces of the language that they know. Watching them has made it really clear to me that just because you know something doesn't mean you can teach it. Some of the explanations I've overheard have been rather entertaining to say the least.

A few nights ago, one of the new missionaries came and told us about a note he found left behind by some of the older missionaries, talking about a box of candy that they put in the ceiling above the bathroom. He said he had found the vent they opened to stash the box, and when we went to take a look at it, sure enough we could see a box up in the ceiling when we looked closely enough. After we found a screwdriver, we were able to open up the vent and get the box down, but it was barely filled enough to cover the bottom of the box, and most of it was all opened or half eaten... So much for finding the hidden treasure, right?

Despite all the craziness and shenanigans that everyone manages to get into, there's still alot to be learned, and alot of work to do. My companion Elder Howell and I get a little better at teaching every day, and his Japanese has now reached the point where he no longer feels the need to take written phrases or sentences with him to the lessons. He still doesn't say alot yet, but it's all out of his head and on the spot when he does talk, which is really impressive to me. It's amazing how fast people are able to learn the language with the Lord's help.

So it would appear that my nephew Spencer is being trained in the devious arts of "The Game" while I'm gone. For those of you unfamiliar with The Game, it's really quite simple. There are only three rules: 1) everyone is always playing the game. 2) if you think about the game, you lose the game 3) when you lose, you have to state out loud that you have lost. So I recieved a package from my family with some things in it that I had asked for, including some pictures from just before I left. Included with those pictures, at the very back, was a picture of my nephew Spencer with a little note that said "I lost the game". Well played Spencer. Well played. My mom, sister, and friend Kelsey also thought it would be hilarious to hide sticky notes about the game inside almost everything included in the package. Unfortunately, I think I emerged victorious from that encounter. I'm fairly certain that I found them all, and I won't be finding any surprises in the next upcoming weeks. My options for retaliaion are limited due to circumstances, but this battle will continue. And of course I'll be sure to keep you all posted about it.